Review: Movieland (Eve Ronin Book Four) by Lee Goldberg

While my review previously appeared here in late April thanks to an ARC via NetGalley, today is publication day for this fourth book in a great series, so I am reminding you of it. Make sure you check out Lesa Holstine's review. 

 

It is April as Movieland begins and Sheriff’s Department Detectives Eve Ronin and Duncan “Donuts” Pavone are dispatched to Malibu Creek State Park on a homicide call. A scenic location used by both movies and television programs over the decades, it is now the scene of at least one murder with a second victim in critical condition.

 

The survivor is Zena Faust, a well-known local writer and activist blogger who is a harsh critic of the Sheriff’s Department, developers, and politicians of all types, as well as others who deserve her attention. She has been hit by a shotgun blast and very seriously wounded. Somehow, she managed to crawl out of the nearby pond and get herself to where a couple found her and called for help. Zena’s girlfriend, Kim, took the brunt of a shotgun blast and is very much dead. Zena’s anguish over the death will turn to rage when she realizes that they were not the first targets of a maniac.

 

Somebody has been shooting at things as well as people. This is the sixth shooting that Duncan knows about as he was working the case months ago before Eve Ronin moved to the Lost Hills Station. Political issues with those running the Park as well as elected officials have kept most of the cases quiet because of fears of scaring away tourists. Duncan tried to pursue things internally, but got stonewalled by the upper brass.

 

Now what Duncan suspected and long feared has happened. They have a dead woman and one gravely injured thanks to the shotgun sniper back at work after a long hiatus. Unfortunately, those running the park and those at the top levels of the Sheriff’s Department are far more concerned with politics and keeping things quiet, than actually solving the case.

 

They forgot to factor in a blogger who is not going to let the death of her friend go off the front pages and vanish from the media cycle. They also never considered what Detective Eve Ronin will do, with and without the steadying guidance of her partner who has decades on the job.  

 

Movieland is the fourth book in this very good series that began with Lost Hills and is another fine installment. Politics, inside and outside the department, continues to play a significant role as does the ongoing hatred of Eve by some in her own department. Those two issues, which are almost main characters in their own right, is part of an intense mix that features a complicated murder case that has links to many other cases and situations. A complex and engrossing read, Movieland, is highly recommended as are the previous books in the series. Best to read in order. 

 

The books in the series and my reviews are:

Lost Hills (February 2020)

Bone Canyon (March 2021)

Gated Prey (December 2021)

  

My reading copy was an ARC via NetGalley. 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2022

Review: Movieland (Eve Ronin in Book Four) by Lee Goldberg

It is April as Movieland begins and Sheriff’s Department Detectives Eve Ronin and Duncan “Donuts” Pavone are dispatched to Malibu Creek State Park on a homicide call. A scenic location used by both movies and television programs over the decades, it is now the scene of at least one murder with a second victim in critical condition.

 

The survivor is Zena Faust, a well-known local writer and activist blogger who is a harsh critic of the Sheriff’s Department, developers, and politicians of all types, as well as others who deserve her attention. She has been hit by a shotgun blast and very seriously wounded. Somehow, she managed to crawl out of the nearby pond and get herself to where a couple found her and called for help. Zena’s girlfriend, Kim, took the brunt of a shotgun blast and is very much dead. Zena’s anguish over the death will turn to rage when she realizes that they were not the first targets of a maniac.

 

Somebody has been shooting at things as well as people. This is the sixth shooting that Duncan knows about as he was working the case months ago before Eve Ronin moved to the Lost Hills Station. Political issues with those running the Park as well as elected officials have kept most of the cases quiet because of fears of scaring away tourists. Duncan tried to pursue things internally, but got stonewalled by the upper brass.

 

Now what Duncan suspected and long feared has happened. They have a dead woman and one gravely injured thanks to the shotgun sniper back at work after a long hiatus. Unfortunately, those running the park and those at the top levels of the Sheriff’s Department are far more concerned with politics and keeping things quiet, than actually solving the case.

 

They forgot to factor in a blogger who is not going to let the death of her friend go off the front pages and vanish from the media cycle. They also never considered what Detective Eve Ronin will do, with and without the steadying guidance of her partner who has decades on the job.  

 

Movieland is the fourth book in this very good series and is another fine installment. Politics, inside and outside the department, continues to play a significant role as does the ongoing hatred of Eve by some in her own department. Those two issues, which are almost main characters in their own right, is part of an intense mix that features a complicated murder case that has links to many other cases and situations. A complex and engrossing read, Movieland, is highly recommended as are the previous books in the series. Best to read in order.

 

Movieland is currently scheduled to be released on June 21, 2022. My reading copy was an ARC via NetGalley. 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2022

Review: Gated Prey by Lee Goldberg

As the third book in the series, Gated Prey, begins, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Detective Eve Ronin and her partner, Duncan Pavone, are working undercover out of a house in Calabasas. The house is a McMansion type of deal to fit their roles of beautiful trophy wife/girlfriend and rich old man. There have been numerous attacks on homeowners behind the gates of their exclusive communities so the undercover operation is important. Duncan, who is weeks away from retiring, plays his part to the hilt thanks to his do clothing and the walker he uses to shuffle around in public as he flashes cash. The plan is to get the take down the three-armed home invasion robbers who have been conducting their own increasingly violent redistribution of wealth campaign.

 

The plan works…and almost gets Eve and Duncan killed in the line of duty.

 

When the carnage stops and the smoke clears, Eve and Duncan soon realize that the failure of backup officers to arrive on time could have been far more than accidental. Being the youngest detective as well as how Eve goes about things could have had deadly consequences. That ongoing resentment and internal threat has not gone away either.

 

Then there is the case itself. Dead suspects tell no tales and Eve and Duncan are left still looking for answers regarding how the armed robbers came and went from gated communities, what they did with stuff they stole, and many other questions.  It also becomes clear that these guys were working at the behest of at least one person who has yet to be identified.

 

Completely ignored on the book jacket copy is the second case which involves a fetal abduction. Called out on what appears to be a still birth due to a late term miscarriage, it soon becomes clear that something far more horrible is going on. Little can be said about this case without creating spoilers, but readers should be are aware of the topic as this will be triggering for some readers. Parts of this case was tough to read.

 

Overall, Gated Prey by Lee Goldberg is an enjoyable police procedural that continues to build on the foundation laid by Lost Hills and Bone Canyon. This remains a series that should be read in order. The complicated backstory to the Eve Ronin character as well as her previous actions in earlier cases are repeatedly referenced as this read moves forward. Not quite at the same level of the previous book as this one reads differently in an unexplainable way, Gated Prey by Lee Goldberg is still very much worth your time as is the series.

 

Make sure you read Lesa Holstine’s more descriptive review.

 

My reading copy in print format came from the Lochwood Branch of the Dallas Public Library System.

 

Kevin R. Tipple © 2021

Lesa's Book Critiques: KEVIN’S CORNER ANNEX – BONE CANYON

 Lesa's Book Critiques: KEVIN’S CORNER ANNEX – BONE CANYON

My Favorites of 2021--January to June

Earlier this week, Lesa Holstine reminded me it was time to select the favorite reads of the year so far. She has ten in her post that you can read here. Two of her listed books are on my holds list at the local library. A third would be if I did not care about reading a series in order. I do. I am weird like that. So, I am still waiting via my library on the first book for that series based in Greece.

In the meantime, I offer you my four favorite books so far this year. Yes, I am reading slower than years past. What started to happen a few years ago seems to be the way it is these days. Everything I do now is way slower and takes a lot more effort than it seemed to be just a few years ago when I had to juggle so much more as a husband, caregiver, dad, etc.

I am also trying to resume my editing work and have done a couple of projects for clients in the last couple of months. Then there is the fact I am trying to get back to writing my own fiction. There are a couple of anthologies I want to submit to as well as a couple of online sites, so part of my time is being spent noodling on trying to make that happen.

So, today for the first half of the year I offer you four books. Three are from series and one is a super good anthology. While there were other good reads I enjoyed these four were my favorites to date in order of appearance here on the blog.

 

Fatal Divisions: A Sheriff Hank Worth Mystery by Claire Booth opens with the good sheriff still thinking about recent events. It has only been a matter of a couple of weeks or so since the events of A Deadly Turn and Sheriff Hank Worth is shaken to his core. He is trying to fake it by throwing himself into his work and other projects, but his wife, Maggie, and other folks see beyond the façade and know better. Grief and guilt are very hard to deal with though it helps that Sheriff Worth has a lot of people who care and support him. (The rest of my review of this latest installment in a great series is here.)

 

Life has not been kind to John Rust and the latest DWI stop is not going to help matters in The Orphan’s Guilt: A Joe Gunther Novel by Archer Mayor. The arrest brought his lawyer, Scott Jezek, into his latest case. While John Rust is looking at suspension of his driving privileges and jail time, the background of why it happened is important. (The rest of my review can be found here.)

 

Bone Canyon by Lee Goldberg opens a few weeks after Lost Hills and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Detective Eve Ronin is continuing to be back at work and recovering from injuries sustained during that case. She finally has the cast off her wrist and is grudgingly doing the physical therapy needed to gain strength and mobility in the wrist. She has also been finally released from desk duty. That means she can finally get back on the streets doing her job and she is thrilled with that fact. (This is a series that should be read in order and the rest of my review here includes a link to my review of the previous book, Lost Hills.)

 

From the complicated and powerful opening tale to the twist ending in the last one, the twenty stories in Moonlight & Misadventure: 20 Stories of Mystery and Suspense are all good ones. Moonlight as well as misadventure in a variety of ways plays a major role in all of them. So does more than a hint of madness in many of the tales. In some cases, things happened as they always would because of the nature of the folks involved. In others, the plan failed sometimes in surprising ways. (The rest of my review of this very good anthology can be found here.)

 

There you have it. My favorite four. I am pretty sure that if you read this blog, one or more should work for you.

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2021

Review: Bone Canyon by Lee Goldberg

Bone Canyon by Lee Goldberg opens a few weeks after Lost Hills and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Detective Eve Ronin is continuing to be back at work and recovering from injuries sustained during that case. She finally has the cast off her wrist and is grudgingly doing the physical therapy needed to gain strength and mobility in the wrist. She has also been finally released from desk duty. That means she can finally get back on the streets doing her job and she is thrilled with that fact.

 

It is a hot, muggy morning in the middle of January and her and her partner, Duncan Pavone, are responding to a scene on Hueso Canyon Road in the Santa Monica Mountains. A few weeks earlier, Santa Anna winds created an epic firestorm that roared through the area burning one hundred thousand acres as well as sixteen hundred structures. It also killed.

 

It also revealed bodies of people who were not killed by the fire. Dumped bodies of the dead that were in the brush before the fire blasted through. Bodies that nobody, other than a killer or killers, knew were there.

 

Now they have another one. A skull fragment is in the backyard of a home that was spared the worst of the fire. Owned by Sherwood Mintner who states that the backyard has been relandscaped several times over the years and that the piece -- “part of a forehead, the left eye socket, part of the nasal cavity, and the cheek bone (page six)” -- was absolutely not there before the fire. Homicide Detectives Duncan Pavone and Eve Ronin verify the piece is human in appearance and bring in forensics as his yard is now a crime scene.

 

It is also not the only piece of bone on the seared and scarred hillside.

 

It is not the only body out there either. 

Bone Canyon by Lee Goldberg is a fast moving and intense police procedural that builds very well on the first book. The ongoing theme for Eve Ronin, who some know as “Deathfist,” continues here in its ongoing secondary story line. It continues to directly and indirectly affect her personal life, her professional life in the Sheriff’s Department and is used by others when it suits them and their agenda.

 

It also works to humanize her in her interactions with others as she works cases and overcomes obstacles of a personal as well as a political nature.  Plenty of action powers this police procedural as it did with the first book. The tendency by the author to over explain the simplest things that readers of police procedural already know continues here as well.

 

A highly entertaining book, Bone Canyon is a fun and fast read that builds well on Lost Hills. While it could be read by those readers new to the series, there are many spoilers in the book thereby making it strongly preferable to having read the first before reading Bone Canyon.

 

For another take on the book, be sure to read Lesa Holstine’s review for Library Journal last October. Lesa also sent me her hardback copy to read as she continues to have more books than closet space. Big time thank you, Lesa!

 

Bone Canyon

Lee Goldberg

http://leegoldberg.com/portfolio/bone-canyon/

Thomas & Mercer

https://amazonpublishing.amazon.com/thomas-mercer.html

January 2021

ISBN# 978-1542042710

Hardback (also available in audio and eBook formats)

288 Pages

 

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2021

Lesa's Book Critiques: WINNERS AND BLOOD AND BONES GIVEAWAY

 Lesa's Book Critiques: WINNERS AND BLOOD AND BONES GIVEAWAY